- US President Trump says Iran war deal is not fully negotiated and urges caution
- Washington and Tehran maintain ceasefire since April 8 amid energy crisis concerns
- Trump insists US blockade near Strait of Hormuz stays until deal is signed
US President Donald Trump has kept the world on edge, saying the end-of-war agreement with Iran is not "fully negotiated yet" after spending weeks insisting that Tehran has to make nuclear concessions or face renewed attacks. The US leader said he had told his negotiators not to "rush", even after both Tehran and Washington signalled progress towards an agreement to end the war.
"I have informed my representatives not to rush into a deal at this time is on our side," Trump wrote on Truth Social as uncertainty swirls over the future of the war in the Middle East.
Washington and Tehran have been observing a ceasefire since April 8, while mediators push for a permanent settlement of the war that has led to one of the worst energy crises in history, as Iran imposed controls on Gulf shipping and the US has blockaded Iran's ports.
Trump insisted the US blockade on Iranian shipping near the Strait of Hormuz would remain in place until an agreement "is reached, certified, and signed".
"If I make a deal with Iran, it will be a good and proper one...It isn't even fully negotiated yet. So don't listen to the losers, who are critical about something they know nothing about. Unlike those before me who should have solved this problem many years ago, I don't make bad deals," he wrote in another post.
Trump had earlier posted that the deal "has been largely negotiated, subject to finalisation between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the various other countries."
ALSO READ: 'Do Not Rush': Trump To US Negotiators On Signing Deal With Iran
Rubio's Assurance
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the New York Times the United States was prepared to enter "into very serious talks" about Iran's nuclear programme if Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz.
The remarks suggested that Washington may take a phased approach and accept an interim agreement that did not immediately address Iran's nuclear programme.
"You can't do a nuclear thing in 72 hours on the back of a napkin," Rubio told the newspaper in a brief interview during his visit to New Delhi.
"The straits have to be immediately reopened, and then we will enter, under agreed-to parameters, into very serious talks about enrichment, about the highly enriched uranium and about their pledge to never have nuclear weapons...It can't take years, but it'll take some time to work through those technical matters," Rubio said.
The state secretary suggested that the United States could renew its threats to attack Iran if the negotiations do not bear fruit within two months.
"Ultimately, the approach has to deliver what we want it to deliver," Rubio said. "If it doesn't, then the president has every option available to him in 60 days that he has available to him now."
ALSO READ: "Agreement With Iran Must Eliminate Nuclear Danger": Netanyahu To Trump
What Iran Said
Iran's Tasnim news agency has reported that the key clauses of a possible agreement remained "unresolved at this time," including the issue of frozen Iranian assets. According to news agency AFP, Iranian officials also confirmed the existence of a draft agreement but stressed that -- despite the long-standing US demand for an end to its uranium enrichment -- talks on the issue of Iran's contested nuclear programme have been deferred for 60 days after any deal.
Talking to state television, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran was "still prepared to assure the world that we are not seeking nuclear weapons," but it was unclear if this promise would be enshrined in the text of the deal.
According to Iran's Fars news agency, "sanctions on oil, gas, petrochemicals and their derivatives would be temporarily lifted during the negotiation period so that Iran can freely sell its products."
ALSO READ: "Agreement With Iran Must Eliminate Nuclear Danger": Netanyahu To Trump
What Negotiators Said
Leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, as well as representatives from Turkey and Pakistan, joined a call with Trump to discuss the deal on Saturday.
Pakistan, which mediated historic face-to-face negotiations between US and Iranian delegations in April, hopes to host another round of talks "very soon," Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said.
He said Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir, who visited Tehran on Friday and Saturday, also joined the call, which "provided a useful opportunity... to move the ongoing peace efforts forward to bring lasting peace in the region."
